Florence & The Machine performed at Alexandra Palace recently, in a performance that was both energetic and heartfelt. The group opened with the hugely popular hits, ‘What The Water Gave Me’, ‘Ship To Wreck’ and ‘Shake It Out‘.
The eight-person band, which encompasses every sort of instrument imaginable, from the harp to the electric guitar, headlined Glastonbury Festival this summer, as a last-minute replacement for Foo Fighters, in a set that received multiple five star reviews. The band’s recent sold out show at the 7000 capacity London venue, the second night in a four night run, was also an absolute success. Fans waited eagerly in the great hall with homemade signs and pints of beer. There was an audible buzz of excitement in the venue before Florence appeared onstage, which turned into a roar of support from thousands of fans when the lights dimmed.
Before performing the hugely popular ‘Shake It Out’, Florence turned to the crowd and explained how they wanted a choir onstage, but didn’t have the space, and would need the audience to be the choir for the next song, which resulted in a harmony of thousands of voices resonating in time with the musicians onstage.
Barefoot and dancing from one side of the stage to the other, in front of a massive glittered backdrop, Florence & The Machine had their audience captivated from the get go. Occasionally stopping to talk to the crowd, throwing her arms and legs in spontaneous and wild dancing motions, red hair waving and shaking a tambourine in time to the songs, it was definitely a performance to be remembered by all who attended.
The group’s most recent album, ‘How Big, How Blue, How Beautiful’, released through Island Records, averaged 4/5 star reviews, and charted gold in UK and US rock albums. The majority of the songs played that night, including ‘Long & Lost’, ‘Delilah‘, and ‘What Kind of Man‘, are from their most recent album, however Florence + The Machine also played songs such as ‘Spectrum’, ‘Dog Days Are Over’ and ‘Drumming Song‘, from their previous albums, ‘Lungs and Ceremonials‘.
All in all, it was an energetic and dynamic show, which easily reinforced the fact that Florence & The Machine are artists currently at top of the Indie Rock genre, their performance that night, and likely every other night on tour, sent out the message that this is an already big band, from which people can expect even bigger things in the future.
Words & Photography – Izzie Ruffle
